still pissed that they let Nikola Mirotic play for Spain it just isn't fair lol. I think Serbia would be a force in a few years if he played for them.

09-11-2011, 08:40 AM

DENZSKI2204

Re: Eurobasket 2011

all i gotta say is go macedonia, they have put themselves on the map when onenexpected them to even win one game. mc caleb what a point guard love if the pacers were able to snatch him up and pero antic isnt bad either.

09-11-2011, 09:01 AM

pacer4ever

Re: Eurobasket 2011

Turkey needs to wake the **** up first Poland now this. They are playing terrible luckily it is still early in the game. Serbia is playing good but Turkey is playing very poor also.

09-11-2011, 09:05 AM

BKK

Re: Eurobasket 2011

So happy with the France win vs Lithuania :happydanc

Now that was a really solid game against a crazy and very lound crowd. The guys did a great job on the defensive end, limiting them to their lowest total of points in the tournament and denying their usual efficiency from long range. We had a bad lapse in the 3rd quarter but stayed in the game thanks to this exact defense. I think they have made huge strides in terms of mental and confidence. Big difference from the previous teams.

Also glad De Colo finally had his game. His play in the 4th was amazing, very smooth. San Antonio must have been onto something once again :)

I hope they build on the momentum and give their all vs Spain who's still the superior team. They have a shot and I'd rather see them claim the top spot and have a quarterfinal game vs Slovenia pr Finland than finish second and have a risky game vs Greece...

09-11-2011, 09:25 AM

pacer4ever

Re: Eurobasket 2011

Lithuania v Germany is gonna be insane a must win for both should be great.

Turkey needs to feed the paint in the 2nd half they are settling for terrible shots. Get the ball inside and get higher % shots and make smarter plays.

France throwing the game against Spain by keeping the likes of Parker and Noah on the bench.

Some will say this breaks the momentum they had from 7 consecutive wins, especially if they lose in a blow out (as it seems like it will be the case right now midway through Q3). Some will say this was the thing to do to be on the 'easier' side of the bracket.

I think it is good to give the subs lots of playing time so that they're ready to contribute in the later stages of the tournament, and I think it was absolutely necessary to give the starters a rest. France is nowhere nearly as deep as Spain, and Parker & Co. have played a LOT of minutes so far.

09-11-2011, 12:23 PM

BKK

Re: Eurobasket 2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pingu

France throwing the game against Spain by keeping the likes of Parker and Noah on the bench.

Some will say this breaks the momentum they had from 7 consecutive wins, especially if they lose in a blow out (as it seems like it will be the case right now midway through Q3). Some will say this was the thing to do to be on the 'easier' side of the bracket.

I think it is good to give the subs lots of playing time so that they're ready to contribute in the later stages of the tournament, and I think it was absolutely necessary to give the starters a rest. France is nowhere nearly as deep as Spain, and Parker & Co. have played a LOT of minutes so far.

True, it would have been nice to avoid Greece in quarterfinals but I understand Parker and co really need a rest.

Still this game is tough to watch :puke:

09-11-2011, 12:35 PM

Pingu

Re: Eurobasket 2011

First half was nice I thought, Seraphin was impressive on offense. Traore looked really good too.

The bracket situation is a cluster****:

- You win this game, you play Finland or Slovenia in the quarterfinals but then you most likely play Lithuania, in Vilnius, in the semifinals.
- You lose this game, you play Greece in the quarterfinals and then most likely Russia in the semifinals.

And France at full strength might still lose against this stacked Spanish team, so... what do you do?

All things considered I think Collet made the right decision. He'll take some heat for it from some quarters of the French and international press, but it's not clear what he should have done:

- Play at full strength and win: you're criticized for not looking ahead and probably playing Lithuania in Vilnius in the semis, and for not resting starters.
- Play at full strength and lose: you're criticized for not resting your starters, and losing your bet that you could beat Spain.
- Play the subs and lose: you threw the game, killed the momentum, and will have to face Greece in the next round.

09-13-2011, 04:57 PM

ballism

Re: Eurobasket 2011

Tbh, France is in a great position to get to the finals.

Whatever you face in the semis -- Serbia or Russia - you have 3 extra hours for sleep and practice.
Which doesn't seem much but it's huge when Russia or Serbia will have only something like 18 hours between quarter finals and the semis.
And they'll likely be coming off very tough game too.

These 18 hour breaks between knockout playoff games are the worst part about FIBA tournaments. Is it that tough to figure out a different structure? It can really mess up a team.
Fortunately for France, they were the lucky team here.
It's not the biggest advantage, I mean, there have been cases where a team gets a 3 days break, and their opponent in the playoffs gets less than 24 hours.
Still, France got to like their chances a lot.

As for Greece, I doubt they'll be much of a challenge for France. They struggle against length and intensity, and France has plenty of that. Just make sure someone helps Diaw on the Greek shooting bigs.

09-13-2011, 04:59 PM

ballism

Re: Eurobasket 2011

Btw, Russia - Macedonia finish was the most awesome so far.
But I won't be surprised if the Spain / France /Lithuania /Serbia bracket advances to semis intact.

09-14-2011, 12:57 PM

ballism

Re: Eurobasket 2011

Spain destroys Slovenia, advances to the semis. Slovenia looked like they could win for the first 1.5 quarters. Then Spain stepped it up and took over.
Marc Gasol was dominant, and he only had a 7-5. It's incredible how little his game gets reflected in stats sometimes.

Slovenia has been the most dissappointing team for me personally. I didn't expect much of Turkey, nor Croatia, nor Italy. All hyped up early exits. They just don't have a consistent track record and tend to melt down. Kind of one hit wonders with a ton of talent.

But Slovenia is always so consistent, and had talent at every position this year (Dragic brothers, Lorbek, Jaka Lakovic, Mirza Begic). And they played in a very weak division. They need to change their coach and get back to open court ball.

09-14-2011, 03:57 PM

ballism

Re: Eurobasket 2011

Wow at Lithuania.
They deserved this. Idk what else to say.

09-16-2011, 02:24 AM

BKK

Re: Eurobasket 2011

Lithuania clearly did everything to lose this one at the end of the game. Could not believe it. :eek:

And now...

Whoooohooooo for France!!! :happydanc Man that was a tough game we really got trapped in their rythme from the beginning and could not play like we wanted. On the other hand they played poorly and we kept up with them once again thanks to a solid defense. If we could find a way to free our game and play it fully there was no reason for us not to win this one. We finally did it at the end when Parker woke up pheeeww. Props once again to De Collo and Batum who both came up with big shots. And I'd say props to Noah for "containing" Bourousis while he was on the floor.

No props for Bobo Diaw. Stop being so sluggish for long periods of time and stop passing shots like this. The guy really got me stressed out yesterday when he was in the game at the end. Was more comfortable with Flo Pietrus.

Anyway once again congratulation. That's another game we could never have won in the past. On to the semis with Russia now :D

09-16-2011, 02:51 AM

Pingu

Re: Eurobasket 2011

Boris Diaw needs to shoot the ****ing basketball when he's 2 inches away from the rim, instead of trying to make difficult passes which end up being intercepted.

On a side note, I find it ludicrous that teams which get to the semifinals are not automatically qualified for the Olympics. They either need to expand the Olympic basketball tournament or give more slots to the European teams. With all due respect to Tunisia, it's not a team that can compete with any of the teams which played in this Eurobasket (yes, even Portugal I think might beat Tunisia).

Actually, since there should be teams from every continent for the Olympics, they definitely need to expand the tournament beyond 12 teams.

09-16-2011, 11:12 AM

pacer4ever

Re: Eurobasket 2011

70% in the first half for Macedonia. Do you believe in miracles? Spain is playing very good but Macedonia just is on fire. I think Spain wins no way Macedonia can keep that up for all 4 quarters. But Macedonia is a thing of beauty offensively JOB would be proud with how they have played and shot from distance.

No joke I wouldn't mind the Pacers taking a look at Bo MCCalebb he has the talent and has played in so many big games anyone know his contact situation?

Rubio has been so disappointing in this tourney

Without Juan Carlos Navarro Spain would be down 25.

EDIT: Game is pretty much over the Cinderella story comes to an end. If Bo Macedonia had rebounders they would of won easily. Macedonia just doesnt have the talent they out played Spain IMO they just didn't have the talent up front to match the Gasols on the glass.

09-16-2011, 02:04 PM

ballism

Re: Eurobasket 2011

Afaik McCalebb makes a ~$1.5 mil a year with 2 years remaining. no idea about buyouts.

btw, i love what Macedonia did in this tournament. But it's a fail that McCalebb is on that team.
There's no relation between him and that country whatsoever. no family relation, not even a very distant relation, he never lived there, he didn't even play there at any point in his career.

Just a random country basically paying a high profile Euroleague player to play for them. "Hey we don't know you, but if you play for us we'll give you a European passport. And then you can ask for more money in Euroleague."

Is Nemanja Bjelica coming over soon? I would think he is almost ready. Just seems like there is a long jam at the combo forward in Minnesota. Maybe Kahn will trade him. Kahn was really high on the guy even though about him coming over last year. Did he regress? When should he be in the NBA? I didnt like him very much he just cant shoot good enough IMO. He is a poor mans Davis Bertans IMO he has a better body much just doesn't seem like he will make it in the league because he isn't a good athlete or shooter and his defense will be horrid. I think he will get bullied around if he comes over.

I know he was injured quite a bit last year. I would think if he stays healthy this year he will get a shot at the NBA next year.

He played really bad in the euro basket IMO what is your opinion of him Ballism?

10-09-2011, 09:30 AM

ballism

Re: Eurobasket 2011

I don't think he regressed, he just never was very good.
He took a big step from a mediocre Serbian team to an ACB contender. And ended up deep on the bench. That's only normal imo, considering his level.
He still has some time.
But idd, I'd be very surprised if he ever succeeds in the NBA.